Community Mental Wellness Worker Training Act
This bill, the Community Mental Wellness Worker Training Act, would authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, to award grants to eligible entities to design and run community mental wellness worker training programs. The funded activities would cover training, certification, supervision, and ongoing quality assurance for workers who provide basic screening and evidence-based, culturally and linguistically competent counseling for mild-to-moderate mental health or substance use conditions, including safety planning and suicide risk reduction. The program would also support the use of digital platforms for screening, training, supervision, and delivery of treatments, and would promote the integration of these workers into existing behavioral health systems. The bill sets priorities for grant awards toward underserved areas and populations, requires technical assistance to recipients, and imposes a reporting requirement to Congress. It also includes a specific liability-related provision for covered entities participating in the grants and establishes definitions for key terms such as “community mental wellness worker,” “eligible entity,” and “medically underserved community.” The proposal authorizes $25 million per year from 2026 through 2030 for this program, with at least 20% reserved for training and technical assistance.
Key Points
- 1Authorized program to award grants to eligible entities to establish and run community mental wellness worker training programs, including training, certification, supervision, and ongoing quality assurance.
- 2Funds may be used for screening and delivering evidence-informed, culturally and linguistically competent counseling for mild-to-moderate mental health or substance use conditions, plus costs for digital platforms and supervision.
- 3Priority in grantmaking given to areas with high poverty/unemployment, medically underserved communities, higher substance use rates, or higher dual-eligible (Medicare/Medicaid) populations.
- 4Grants include a malpractice/negligence liability framework for covered entities, with a required list of officials and a delayed applicability starting after the first full fiscal year post-enactment.
- 5Funding level: $25 million per year from 2026–2030, with at least 20% set aside for training and technical assistance; includes annual reporting to Congress on participation and certification numbers.